The ECB has nudged the three floodlit England-India T20Is next month an hour earlier – 5.30pm BST rather than the 6.30pm slot that’s become the modern default – after chats with the broadcasters on both sides of the world.
Five T20Is and three ODIs make up India’s visit from 1-19 July. The two daytime games in the T20I set stay put, but the evening fixtures at Trent Bridge, The Oval and Edgbaston now begin at 5.30pm (10pm in India). Sky Sports and Sony Sports both felt a slightly earlier start would keep more eyeballs on screens on a working night – and the ECB has gone with it.
Start times, as ever, are a juggling act between the board, host grounds, the touring side and whoever is paying for the pictures. “Attention should be drawn to the fact that the ECB’s revenues are inherently cyclical, reflecting the scheduling of high-value broadcast series by opposition,” the board’s recent financial report reminded everyone. In plain language: when India come, the numbers look rosier.
That shows up in the ticket uptake. All three ODIs have already sold out and only a few hundred seats remain across the five T20Is. High-summer sunset is after 9pm, so, irony noted, we might get through the lot without actually noticing the floodlights.
India on Saturday named a 16-man squad for both the England leg and the quick stop in Belfast against Ireland (26 & 28 June). Shreyas Iyer steps in as captain with Suryakumar Yadav rested, while 15-year-old left-arm quick Vaibhav Sooryavanshi receives a first senior call-up. The Civil Service ground at Stormont was full long before that news, its temporary stands taking capacity to roughly 4,500.
Cricket Ireland report a gentle spike in enquiries since the squad dropped, understandable given the prospect of a teenage debutant. Whether Sooryavanshi plays is another matter; selectors are coy until they’ve had a look at him in training.
Back in England, venues are quietly pleased about the earlier throw-in. A 5.30pm start means commuters can still make the first ball, while families can think about the school run the following morning without needing toothpicks for their eyelids.
There’s no change to the three 50-over matches – day games at Durham, Lord’s and Bristol – and the women’s fixtures against New Zealand in the same window are untouched.
All told, it’s a pragmatic tweak: a schedule that suits broadcasters, gives spectators a fighting chance with public transport, and might leave the odd groundsman wondering why they switched the lights on at all.
